Statement ofRogier van den Brink, Lead Economist, andKarl Kendrick Chua, Senior Country Economiston the launch of thePhilippine Economic Update August 2014 editionGood morning to everyone.Our presentation... Show More + is structured along 3 topics. First, we will discuss recent global and Philippine economic developments. Second, we will present the growth prospects for the Philippines. We will then end by discussing in more detail the medium-term agenda, especially as it relates to public investment.In the June 2014 World Bank Global Economic Prospects, global growth projections were downgraded to 2.8 percent, from 3.2 percent in January. The main reason for the downgrade was the anemic growth performance in the US in the first quarter of 2014. However, long-term prospects, in particular for developing countries still look good, but only if structural reforms efforts continue to be undertaken. We think that this global growth story is also very relevant for the Philippines.Recent economic dev Show Less -

Corporate Social Responsibility:The Business Model for the next Asian MiracleJuly 24, 2014Dusit Thani HotelKeynote Message of Motoo KonishiCountry Director, World Bank PhilippinesMr. Jeffrey Tarayao, LCF... Show More + Chair, Ms. Ching Jorge, LCF Vice-Chair, other LCF Board of Trustees and Advisory Council members and honored guests.MAGANDANG UMAGA PO.I am privileged to be in the midst of advocates and practitioners of corporate social responsibility. Twenty years ago, Corporate Social Responsibility used to be a charity initiative run by the marketing department that involved collecting money or organizing volunteers for a local charity.Then, driven by events such as oil spills or child labor, it became obvious that this was not enough to undertake corporate responsibility. Some companies have started thinking through the wider consequences of their business model. Now, more and more businesses are thinking about how to use the business model itself to solve major social problems. S Show Less -

Creating More and Better Jobs: We Can Work It OutMotoo Konishi, Rogier van den Brink and Karl Kendrick ChuaPresentation to the Third Arangkada Philippines Anniversary ForumWednesday February 26, 2014Makati... Show More + Shangri-La HotelIntroductionThank you for inviting the World Bank Group to speak to you at the third anniversary of Arangkada. I would like to structure my presentation along five core messages.First, the central policy challenge facing the Philippines today is how accelerate inclusive growth, the type that creates more and better jobs and reduces poverty. Let me make it clear from the outset what we mean by that. By “jobs” we mean “what people do to make a living”. So it includes formal work and informal work. It covers wage workers and self-employment. It covers businesses of all sizes.By “good” jobs, we mean jobs which raise people’s real income and bring them out of poverty.Second, you already know what reforms are needed to create more and better jobs. For instance, the Ara Show Less -

Your Excellency Eng. Adel Faqih, Minister of Labor in the Kingdom of Saudi ArabiaDirector General Mr. Ahmed Luqman, Arab Labor OrganizationDirector General, Mr. Guy Ryder, International Labor OrganizationPresident,... Show More + Dr. Ahmad Mohamed Ali Al-Madani, Islamic Development BankMinisters, Ambassadors, Presidents and representatives of the Labor Unions and Employers’ Associations, Ladies and Gentlemen,Allow me first to extend my sincere thanks to the Government and the people of Saudi Arabia and to the city of Riyadh for hosting this important Forum and for the gracious hospitality and welcome with which we have been received.It is an honor for me to be here with you today to share a few thoughts on how we can deliver the promise of a bright future for the next generation - a future with jobs and opportunities for all.Employment and access to the labor market continues to be a critical issue to the world. Jobs are a basic form of social engagement and a critical source of self-fulfillment and Show Less -

DR. KIM: Thanks very much for coming.I came here specifically to speak with the Holy Father about some of the things that have been happening in the World Bank Group that affect the entire world and that... Show More + are much in line with his stated priorities.As you may know, we have launched a target to end extreme poverty; that is people living on less than US$1.25 a day by 2030, and that means to bring it below 3 percent of people in the world living in extreme poverty. And we've done a lot of studies, and it turns out that it's going to be extremely hard to reach that target. Growth rates, and especially inclusion of the poorest in growth, are going to have to be at levels that are higher than we've seen in the last 20 years. In other words, we have to grow more quickly and we have to include more of the poor in growth if we're to reach that target.Moreover, the second target that we have set is boosting shared prosperity. And by "shared prosperity," we are going to follow the income Show Less -